Railways, Overhead Lines and Level Crossings
Give railway lines a track, add overhead lines, build railway bridges and tunnels, and check level crossings with roads.
On this page
Turn railway lines into track
Imported OSM railways are plain guide lines. Select a line with Railways (8), open Collections → Railways and choose the Collection, Tracks (Single or Double) and the Track, then select Apply. Lines you draw yourself in a railways layer get a single track straight away.
A plain line without a track is not exported. Exported track is the game’s own railway, and the game’s trains can run on it.
Add an overhead line
For an electrified railway, turn on Overhead line and choose its Catenary, then select Apply. Masts and wires follow the track. New tracks start without an overhead line.
A mast that would stand on a road moves to the nearest clear spot within one span; if there is none, it stays and the export warning names it. No mast stands on a bridge deck: a short bridge is crossed by one span between masts on each bank, and over a longer bridge the overhead line pauses and continues beyond it, with a warning.
Build railway bridges
Click the railway line in the viewport and drag the arrow up to raise a bridge. With the bridge selected, choose a Bridge texture collection under Selected railway bridge, then open Bridge Constructor and choose the texture there.
Only bridges you build are exported: a gap in the terrain under a railway does not create one. At the bridge ends, the export cuts the ground under the track so the rails stay on their bed.
Build railway tunnels
Railway tunnels use the Tunnel modifier, as for roads: see Build tunnels. Give the line its track first, then open Tunnel Constructor from Collections → Railways.
Check level crossings
Where a road and a railway meet at the same level, MapToPlay makes a level crossing and levels the road to the rails. There is no crossing in a tunnel, on a bridge, where the road meets the track at less than 15 degrees, or close to a junction.
To review a crossing, click it with the Road tool; Crossing surface sets the surface between the rails. The export adds St Andrew’s crosses at the track and a warning sign before it. Choose None in a crossing’s furniture slot to leave that sign out.